By ERWIN CHLANDA
There are about twice the number of houses for sale in Alice Springs when compared with what is regarded as a strong market.
Realestate.com has 284 properties listed, nearly double the number when the market is strong, according to Lindsay Carey, the local representative of Real Estate Institute NT.
“This is a very high number,” he says.
The average price for a house is $467,000, calculated by the News from the first 19 houses listed on the company’s website.
Prices for flats and units average $257,000 over five first-page listings by Realestate.com.
The average cost of houses offered by Domain, calculated over the first 18 of 212 listings, is $584,000.
Some of the dwellings are listed by both companies.
According to the Census the usual resident population of Alice Springs Town Council Local Government Area in 2021 was 25,912, living in 11,686 dwellings with an average household size of 2.51.
The ABS estimated resident population was 26,518 in 2016; 28,938 in 2021 and 29,213 in 2023.
If our population rose another 800 and stayed above 30,000, we would qualify for city status and therefore be eligible for more government grants.